Combined sales at South Korea's local duty-free shops went down 37.7 percent from 2019 to 15.5 trillion won last year, according to the data from the Korea Duty-Free Shops Association.
Foreign shoppers accounted for 94 percent of the sales, up from 83 percent in 2019, with South Koreans opting to stay at home.
South Korea hosted 10.67 million visitors in 2020, amounting to only 22 percent of 2019's 48.44 million.
In December, duty-free sales stood at 1.2 trillion won, down 16.6 percent from the prior month.
Before local duty-free shops took a big hit from the fast spread of COVID-19 last year, sales at local duty-free shops had been increasing, with the number surpassing the 20 trillion-won mark in 2019.
The pandemic made it impossible for small-scale Chinese vendors who sell their duty-free purchases back home to visit the country.
China Duty-Free Group, which was the fifth biggest duty-free shop by sales in 2019, took the top spot last year.
Dufry of Switzerland, which was the biggest in 2019, settled for second place.
South Korean players Lotte Duty Free and Shilla Duty Free dipped to third and fifth places last year from second and third a year earlier.


BHP, Port Hedland Unions Fail to Reach Wage Deal as Negotiations Continue
TeamViewer Shares Fall Despite Profit Growth as ARR and Customer Base Decline
Galp Shares Fall After Q2 EBITDA Miss Despite Profit Beat and Higher Dividend
X Challenges Australia’s Expanded Social Media Ban Enforcement Powers
Air Liquide Q2 Sales Growth Tops Forecast as Electronics Business Drives Strong Performance
Nvidia Invests $1 Billion in Naver as South Korea AI Data Center Expansion Gains Momentum
Tech Stock Positioning Nears Neutral as Investor Rotation Enters Final Phase, Deutsche Bank Says
Serica Energy to Acquire Pharos Energy for £145.7M, Sending PHARP Shares Soaring
GSK Unveils $2.52 Billion Cost-Cutting Plan to Accelerate Drug Pipeline
Standard Chartered Beats Profit Forecasts as First-Half Earnings Rise 9%
Rio Tinto Stock Jumps as Strong Earnings, Higher Dividend and AI Metal Demand Boost Outlook
AstraZeneca Q2 Earnings Beat Forecasts as Oncology Growth Supports 2026 Outlook
Philips Shares Slide 10% Despite Earnings Beat as Weak Orders Raise Growth Concerns
TSMC Gradually Restarts Japan Chip Plant After Kumamoto Earthquake
Brown-Forman Rejects Sazerac’s $15 Billion Takeover Bid as Family Backs Independence
ASML, Applied Materials Slide as China DUV Chip Equipment Breakthrough Sparks Market Jitters 



